Many industry standard connector receptacles contain an open-contact pattern. These exposed contacts can be bent or damaged if the mating plug is inserted midspan such that one corner of the plug will contact the contacts. While most connecting pairs have integral polarization features, preventing the plug from being inserted backward, these features typically do not prevent the plug from partially entering the receptacle at the wrong location. Accordingly, it would be desirable to supply features that both prevent backward insertion and forces end-to-end alignment.